Soil destruction causes perilous future: Scientists

: Environmental scientists have warned that any development carried out ignoring the importance of soil conservation would not sustain.
When agriculture and infrastructure development incessantly change the natural constitution of soil, it leads to a situation akin to washing away soil under one's feet,they said at a two-day national seminar on 'Soil Pollution and Paradigms for Sustainable Soil Management'.
The seminar, organised by the Environmental Science Department at Karyavattom campus of Kerala University, concluded yesterday.
Scientists were also unanimous in pointing to the disastrous consequences of neglecting soil conservation.
Inaugurating the programme, Director of the Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, S K Chakrabarti, said that while development occurs on one side, the natural environment was becoming more and more fragile on the other.

"Pesticides and chemical fertilizers have helped the country's green revolution considerably. But the dire truth prevails that the chemicals that have leached into our soil for the last fifty years have devastated our soil's soil fertility," he said.

Such activities disregarding soil value would lead to a perilious future, he added.
About 25 academic presentations and poster exhibitions were made by scientists, researchers and students on diverse topics related to soil conservation, soil and environment and climate change and soil composition.
There was also an exhibition of books by the Centre for Innovation in Science and Social Action (CISSA) and Cambridge University Press, India.